Racetrackmasters

After the race in Hungary, both Esteban Ocon and Sebastian Vettel came to a stop on the track. In the case of Ocon because he forgot that he had to enter the pits after the run-out lap. He did not receive a penalty for this. Sebastian Vettel however is facing a penalty, as he was stranded with an empty tank. This could have major consequences. The regulations state that the cars must have at least one litre of fuel in the tank at the end of the race. This is sufficient for the FIA to analyse them properly. From Vettel’s car they could only get 0,3 litre out of the tank. Normally an infringement of this rule leads to disqualification. A representative of Aston Martin had to report to the race control at 20:20. If Vettel is indeed disqualified, it would mean that both Hamilton and Verstappen move up a place. However, Hamilton would gain three points and Verstappen just one.

Seven-times Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton said he suspects he has long COVID, after suffering dizziness and fatigue in the aftermath of a hard-fought Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday. “Everything got a bit blurry on the podium,” said the 36-year-old, who had to be looked over by his Mercedes team doctor after a flat-out charge from last to third around the twisting Hungaroring. “I’ve been fighting all year, really, with staying healthy after what happened at the end of last year. “It’s still a battle.” Hamilton tested positive for COVID-19 and was forced to miss last year’s penultimate Sakhir Grand Prix in December. The Briton was back in action at the final race in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 13, where he finished third after testing negative but reported feeling the after-effects of the disease. On Sunday, he said those effects had lingered. “I haven’t spoken to anyone particularly about it but I think it is lingering,” said Hamilton, who turned an eight-point deficit to Red Bull rival Max Verstappen into a six-point lead with his drive on Sunday. “I remember when I had it, training’s been different since then, the levels of fatigue that you get, it’s different. “Who knows what it is today, maybe its hydration, I don’t know. But I’ve definitely not had that experience. “I had something similar in Silverstone but it’s just way worse,” added the Briton who took his fourth win of the season at the British track two weeks ago. The 4.3-kilometre Hungaroring with its constant twists and turns is a physically demanding track. The race is also often hot. Hamilton’s team mate Valtteri Bottas compared his Mercedes cockpit to a Finnish sauna on Friday. Hamilton said he “gave it everything” in his bid to chase down surprise winner Esteban Ocon, who took his maiden victory, and second-placed four-time champion Sebastian Vettel. “It was a really hard race in general,” said Ocon, sitting alongside Hamilton in the post-race news conference. “This track with the heat, the humidity, the corners, you don’t have a breather here. I feel flat, I feel completely dead as well. I tell you I will have a good sleep tonight.”

Alpine driver Esteban Ocon shocked the Formula One world when he managed to secure his first-ever win at the Hungarian Grand Prix — and it all came down to a chaotic start that saw countless drivers knocked out of contention. Just before the race began, the skies opened up and rain began to fall, making for a damp start to the race. Lewis Hamilton led the field on the start to the race, and the wet conditions immediately saw chaos strike. Valtteri Bottas had a poor start heading into the first turn and rammed into the rear of Lando Norris’ McLaren, which punted Norris into Max Verstappen and Bottas into Sergio Perez. Charles Leclerc was knocked out in the fray by Lando Norris, and Daniel Ricciardo spun, but both Red Bulls attempted to continue. On Red Bull tried to pit but lost pieces of his bodywork as it entered the track, and Verstappen was alerted the he had lost half of his barge board. It was a bit of an uninspiring denouement to the back-and-forth war of words between Red Bull Racing and Mercedes that has raged since Silverstone two weeks ago. It was a boon for drivers like Esteban Ocon and Sebastian Vettel, who managed to nab second and third place in the fray. Williams driver Nicholas Latifi had secured sixth place, while Carlos Sainz Jr. flew from 15th to fourth. Soon after, a red flag flew to clear the massive amounts of debris scattered over the track. By the time the cars hit the track again, the surface appeared to rapidly be drying, and the FIA determined that it was possible to put together a standing start. In a wild move, Hamilton decided to start the race on wet tires while the rest of the field chose to pit and therefore had to start the race from pit lane. That meant we were awarded with a wild running order with George Russell in second place. Hamilton was asked to pit while George Russell was passed by much of the field in what was thought to be a puncture before it was announced the stewards had required him to drop back two places to make up for the ones he gained on pit road. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon took the led while Hamilton returned to the track in 14th, just one place over the last running car. On lap 14, Verstappen attempted to pass Haas’ Mick Schumacher, the latter of whom gave him a difficult time. Schumacher ran Verstappen off the track, and the two eventually made a little contact before Verstappen took the position. That put him into the points. Meanwhile, Hamilton was still languishing away in 13th. Hamilton quickly made up positions, but Hamilton pitted his Mercedes on lap 20 for hard tires, ending up back in 12th. Verstappen pitted the next lap, but he returned to the track behind Hamilton, the latter of whom had a clear track in front of him to gain positions while Verstappen would have to contend with Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren. The lead drivers pitted, with Vettel having a significantly slower stop that put him exactly that time behind Ocon. Verstappen pitted on lap 41; with the car out of the points, he was trying new tires as a last ditch effort to pick up the pace. Hamilton and Alonso kicked up a serious battle for fourth place, with Hamilton frequently trying to pass and Alonso blocking the British driver from taking a higher position for several laps. It wasn’t until Alonso locked up his tires on lap 65 of 70 that Hamilton was finally able to make the pass. He quickly approached the third-place Ferrari of Carlos Sainz Jr.; both drivers passed lapped Daniel Ricciardo at the same time, with Hamilton pushing Sainz wide and taking third place on lap 67. While Hamilton did quickly knock out the gap between himself and second-place Vettel, there weren’t enough laps left for Hamilton to make the pass. The race ended with Ocon taking the checkered flag. Also worth noting: both Williams drivers scored points during this race, making it the first points either driver scored in F1. Additionally, Lewis Hamilton has now regained the lead of the World Championship. 2021 F1 HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX – RESULTS POS DRIVER NAT. TEAM TIME 1 Esteban Ocon FRA Alpine F1 Team 70 Laps 2 Sebastian Vettel GER Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team + 1.859s 3 Lewis Hamilton GBR Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team + 2.736s 4 Carlos Sainz ESP Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow + 15.018s 5 Fernando Alonso ESP Alpine F1 Team + 15.651s 6 Pierre Gasly FRA Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda + 63.614s 7 Yuki Tsunoda JPN Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda + 75.803s 8 Nicholas Latifi CAN Williams Racing + 77.910s 9 George Russell GBR Williams Racing + 79.094s 10 Max Verstappen NED Red Bull Racing + 80.244s 11 Kimi Raikkonen FIN Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen + 1 Lap 12 Daniel Ricciardo AUS McLaren F1 Team + 1 Lap 13 Mick Schumacher GER Uralkali Haas F1 Team + 1 Lap 14 Antonio Giovinazzi ITA Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen + 1 Lap DNF Charles Leclerc MON Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow DNF DNF Valtteri Bottas FIN Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team DNF DNF Lando Norris GBR McLaren F1 Team DNF DNF Lance Stroll CAN Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team DNF DNF Sergio Perez MEX Red Bull Racing DNF DNF Nikita Mazepin RUS Uralkali Haas F1 Team DNF

Mick Schumacher has been warned he needs to stop the “heavy” crashes which have become “too frequent” in recent races. On Saturday, the Haas driver missed qualifying for the second time season after a 30G impact with the barriers at Turn 11 during final practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix. This comes after Schumacher also crashed out in FP3 in Monaco and in Q1 at Circuit Paul Ricard, all accidents that have hit the American squad a little hard in the pocket. “Mick in the last five races had quite a few big ones,” Haas chief Guenther Steiner said. “If you have a spin or something like this, that happens. But these accidents are quite heavy, it’s a lot of money, and for no good reason. “So we have to work on it, to get better on that one. “Obviously, the budget is the budget and you need to stick to it,” he noted. “You always have to have ideas how to get around it when you have these accidents. “But at the moment, obviously we feel it, but we can still deal with it. But soon we will need to find new ways to overcome this because they’re getting a little bit too frequent and too heavy.” Steiner was also disappointed that Schumacher seemingly didn’t learn from what happened in Monaco, when he crashed out at Casino Square in FP3, and was unable to qualify. “Yeah, I actually think so, by now we should know where we stand,” he said. “In FP3 you compromise yourself not taking part in qualifying and the risk is always there because it’s only two hours away from when you finish FP3 to qualifying. “Obviously, they need to learn out of this. We had a few and that’s OK, but we need to get better at this.” And while much of the attention has been on the spins and offs of teammate Nikita Mazepin earlier in the year, the Haas chief believes it might actually be Mick now making more errors. “We make too many mistakes, that is the problem. Or I would say, in defence of Nikita, I shouldn’t use the plural, because in the last races he behaved very well,” he said. “He did very well. He didn’t do any damage or anything. And Mick, just the last races, we had some accidents, which we need to get better at. “You always plan for accidents, especially with rookie drivers, but I think we have reached a point now where we need to work on it to have less accidents for the rest of the season,” Steiner stated. “From our side, we just have to make plans how we spend our money. We know exactly what we are doing on parts and this but to deal with the drivers, it’s mainly just maybe sitting down and explain the big picture again, that sometimes you need to take risk but you take risk if there is opportunity. “If there is no opportunity, I never take risks personally, because there’s nothing to be gained. And I think at the moment, we know that there is not a lot to be gained, especially not in FP3, and we shouldn’t take this risk in FP3.”

Mercedes blame comments made by Red Bull bosses for the booing and backlash aimed at Lewis Hamilton since the British Grand Prix. The seven-time world champion was the target of intense criticism and abuse, some racial, on social media after colliding with Max Verstappen at Silverstone. Then, after taking pole position in Hungary on Saturday, portions of the Hungaroring crowd were heard jeering Hamilton, perhaps partially caused by perceived delaying tactics prior to the final run of Q3. “I don’t normally [talk] about this kind of thing, what I think, but I heard a lot of booing at end of qualifying and I don’t understand it,” Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas commented. “I would like the people to question themselves and the behaviour, which I don’t think is fair. “We are here as athletes to give every single thing we have to the sport we love, and Lewis did an amazing lap at the end and then you get booing. “So, the people, just question yourself; it’s not right, it’s not fair and we don’t want to see this kind of thing.” The assumption is most of those booing Hamilton are Verstappen fans, and before the weekend began, Mercedes were highly critical of Red Bull bosses Christian Horner and Helmut Marko for stirring up the animosity. “I think the comments that were made [after Silverstone], surely out of emotion, were going directly against a seven-time world champion,” Toto Wolff told Sky Sports. “Words like ‘amateurish” should have no place and what it triggered was an avalanche of comments in the social media, a lot of controversy added to the further polarisation and I think we as a sport should do the contrary. We should de-escalate.” Even though Hamilton addressed those booing him in Parc Ferme, claiming the reaction “fuelled” him, he too also pointed the finger at Red Bull for stirring tensions. “It’s not a surprise to me given the things that have been said from the heads of that team that have incited that, right?” he said via Formula1.com. “I think over this [summer] break people really need to look within in the things that have been said because it is unacceptable the things that have [been] said and on top of that the things that have escalated. “We’ve got to continue to stay positive. I’m really proud of my team for staying so focused during this time because it’s been a whirlwind of emotions and things coming at us in all different directions, but we’ve kept our heads down and come here and delivered.” Hamilton also called on those within F1 to maintain a level of respect. “I’m a sporting fan. I’ve never booed any other team in any other sport because it’s just not in my character,” he added. “We do have to be so careful with our words because there are young kids watching and we are supposed to be shining a light, encouraging people and spreading positivity. “Leaders of this industry need to be leaders. They have people following them and kids following them. As a sport we’ve got a responsibility, so there should be some strong talks probably over the next weeks.

Williams Formula 1 reserve driver Jack Aitken has suffered collarbone and vertebra fractures in a terrifying Spa 24 Hours crash, but feels “quite lucky” to have escaped worse consequences. Aitken, who stood in for a Mercedes-drafted George Russell in F1’s Sakhir GP last year, was contesting his first Spa 24 Hours in an Emil Frey Lamborghini when he was involved in a multi-car accident at the top of Raidillon. He was taken to the hospital along with fellow accident participant and sometime Ferrari F1 tester Davide Rigon. Rigon was reported to have avoided major injuries and has since left hospital, but Aitken was diagnosed with “a broken collarbone, a fractured vertebra (which is stable), and a very small lung contusion”. Aitken’s accident prompted a strong reaction from his long-time junior single-seater peer and rival Callum Ilott, the Ferrari F1 tester writing: “I would also like to say that there needs to be a change at this corner and I’m very surprised nothing has changed yet. Enough is enough.”

Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen will race with a fresh internal combustion engine after the team’s Japanese engine supplier Honda detected a reliability problem on the Dutchman’s engine overnight. After the British Grand Prix, there were some concerns regarding Verstappen’s power unit due to his heavy crash on the opening lap. The integration of power unit means that they are well protected in case of incidents, but the Dutchman’s 51G crash had impact on several parts of his PU. Honda sent the Silverstone crash power unit back to its Sakura factory and changed a few parts which is allowed by the Sporting Regulations. The Japenese engine manufacturer then installed the PU into the car of Verstappen for this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix in order to give it a proper test on Friday. The analysis indicated that the engine works as normal, prompting Honda to give an all-clear to the unit. However, following qualifying on Saturday, post running inspection uncovered a problem which forced Honda to swap Verstappen’s engine for a fresh one. A statement from Honda said: “During post-qualifying checks we noticed something on Max’s PU which might have developed over the course of the weekend, likely to be an after-effect of the Silverstone crash. “We have therefore changed it for a new PU of the same specification. According to the regulations, Max is allowed to start from his third position on the grid with no penalty incurred,” read a statement from Honda. Verstappen first used his second engine that powered his RB16B during his high-speed clash at Silverstone at the French Grand Prix, meaning that it was a relatively fresh engine that completed a race less than the second PU of his championship rival Lewis Hamilton. With 12 races left after the Hungarian Grand Prix, it is highly unlike that the Dutchman will be able to complete 12 races with a single power unit. The installation of a fourth internal combustion engine would result in a grid-drop penalty, which would, of course, have a massive implication on the championship fight, giving Hamilton an opportunity to gain a significant amount of points on Verstappen. The Hasselt-born could theoretically receive a fourth engine in Monza, where the Sprint Qualifying format will be in use, giving him the sprint race and the grand prix to fight his way up the order.

After Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas topped Friday’s sessions, it was Lewis Hamilton who finished fastest of all in Saturday’s final practice for the Hungarian GP. He clocked a 1:16.289 in a session where once again a rookie brought out the red flags, this time it was Mick Schumacher. Saturday’s final practice at the Hungaroring saw the drivers back in the hot seat, literally, with the track temperature above 50’C and rising. Yuki Tsunoda, who crashed his AlphaTauri on Friday morning, was one of the first out, the Japanese rookie looking to make up for lost track time having missed most of the second session as a result. He was joined by Carlos Sainz, the Spaniard’s SF21 fitted with a new engine overnight with Ferrari stating that “some parameters did not satisfy” in the data. He put in a 1:19.443 on the medium Pirellis to lead the way after the opening 10 minutes. Sainz, reporting that his brakes were a “bit bad”, upped his pace to a 1:18.832. He was overhauled by Lewis Hamilton, the Mercedes driver, chasing a ninth Hungarian GP win, clocking a 1:18.587 on the soft tyres. He headed back into the pits after one hot lap, reporting that “there’s a pin on my right tyre”. His mechanics pulled that out and sent him back out, the Brit shaving almost four-tenths off his previous best. Max Verstappen ventured out earlier this Red Bull’s usual Saturday run, easily quickest on the soft tyres with a 1:17.510. He wasn’t P1 for long, Valtteri Bottas crossing the line with a 1:17.428 to lead the way. Sergio Perez slotted into fourth place behind Hamilton with Pierre Gasly the fastest driver not racing for Mercedes or Red Bull driver, the AlphaTauri driver ahead of the Ferraris. Nicholas Latifi was up to eighth place midway through the session, although he did have a small problem with Williams letting him know that his left-side mirror was cracked. With Ferrari looking to do a bit of aero testing, Charles Leclerc admitted he made a mistake – “it’s actually me who is stupid, I don’t know the corner numbers” – as he was told to do constant speed in certain corners but did it in the wrong ones. As the track temperature rose to 57’C, Lando Norris bolted on a fresh set of soft tyres and jumped up to third place. Hamilton also left the pits but headed back in without doing a hot lap as Mick Schumacher brought out the red flags. The Haas rookie lost it at the fast Turn 11 right-hander, slamming into the barrier with the left side of his car. He sounded winded but otherwise okay. “I know what that means” he added, the driver likely out of qualifying. The action resumed with nine minutes on the clock, the track temperature down to 51’C, and a flurry of soft tyre runs in preparation for qualifying. Verstappen went quickest, and Hamilton went quicker. A 1:16.826 for the Mercedes driver, 0.088s up on his title rival. Bottas was third, 0.229s down. Alfa Romeo and Antonio Giovinazzi will be in trouble with the stewards, the driver released into the path of Lance Stroll with the Alfa’s wing making contract with the Aston Martin’s rear right tyre.

AlphaTauri hopes to confirm shortly that Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda will continue to race for it in the 2022 Formula 1 season. Gasly and Tsunoda are Red Bull-contracted drivers placed at the sister team, so their futures are determined by Red Bull itself. There are some variables that could theoretically delay a decision, namely the form of Sergio Perez who is currently the incumbent of the second Red Bull Racing seat, and Tsunoda’s progress in his rookie season being enough to convince Red Bull to keep supporting him. However, AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost has indicated the line-up could be confirmed during the summer break, which begins after this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix. Asked if it would be settled during the summer, Tost said: “Yeah, I hope so because I don’t see any other driver there and I hope that we go on to next year both with Pierre and Yuki.” Tost added that he doesn’t see “any reason to change anything during the summer break on our driver line-up” and reiterated he does not consider there to be “any alternatives”. Red Bull has three junior drivers in Formula 2 in Juri Vips, Liam Lawson and Jehan Daruvala, with Vips the highest-placed in the championship in fifth. In Formula 3, Red Bull-supported Dennis Hauger is fighting for the title. But Tost is clear that the existing line-up is considered AlphaTauri’s best option for 2022. “Pierre is doing a fantastic job and Yuki is a newcomer and he is doing a good job,” said Tost. “He has to get experience and he has to learn a lot. That’s nothing special. That’s logical with young drivers. It’s the risk you take when a rookie comes onboard.” Though Gasly has been in fine form since losing his Red Bull Racing drive and returning to AlphaTauri (then known as Toro Rosso) in mid-2019, a return to the main team for him has never seemed to be on Red Bull’s agenda. He is seen as a worthy lead driver for AlphaTauri in its bid to become more than just a midfield team, having also tried to shed the ‘junior team’ label since its 2020 rebranding. “He is driving on a very, very high level and he shows the potential of the car,” said Tost. Tsunoda is almost halfway through his rookie season in F1 and has various setbacks, including five major incidents across practice and qualifying – the latest being a costly off in opening practice for this weekend’s Hungarian GP. That reflects a weakness Tsunoda has admitted to in terms of not being calm enough at times and getting carried away in the car. But he also scored points on his debut and has finished in the top 10 in four of his 10 grands prix so far, so Red Bull and AlphaTauri remain convinced by his potential. “He is learning fast,” said Tost. “Sometimes he’s maybe a little bit too motivated. We must not forget he was here for the first time with a Formula 1 car and if you look at his laptimes at the beginning of FP1 he was very, very fast. “Now afterwards he was maybe a little bit too fast and I said to him it’s better to be in FP1 a little bit slower and to do many laps because every lap helps you to increase your technical understanding and your experience.”

Williams chief executive Jost Capito would support George Russell’s move to Mercedes for 2022 insisting the Briton is now ready to fight for the title with a top team. As a Mercedes protégé, Russell served his apprenticeship in Formula 1 with Williams and is currently in his third season with the Grove-based outfit. But the speculation in the paddock is swelling that Russel will replace Valtteri Bottas next season at Mercedes, a conjecture supported by recent reports that the Finn’s management had met with Alfa Romeo team boss Fred Vasseur to discuss Bottas’ potential move to the Swiss outfit for next season. Regardless of Mercedes’ decision, Capito has offered Russell his full support and genuinely hopes the Briton will move to Brackley at the end of the season. “I would wish that George gets the seat because he’s in the position now, in his time of career, where he can handle to be in an absolute top team and fight for the championship,” said Capito. “And I would never hold a young driver back if he can have this type of opportunity. So I hope for him, that he gets this opportunity. “From the team’s side, of course we would very much love to keep him, so if he goes to Mercedes and gets the offer, he gets the full support from us. If not, he gets the full support from us. “That’s why we can easily wait for that driver decision whichever way it comes and we’ll be OK.” As for who would eventually replace Russell at Williams, Capito suggested that his team’s short list is growing by the day! “I think every driver who hasn’t got a fixed seat for next year or has an option for next year is talking to us at the moment,” the German said. “It seems the Williams seat is the most aspired seat in F1 right now for a team that has to fill a seat.”

The incident involving Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen has continued to be a topic of conversation during the weekend in Hungary. On Thursday Red Bull were told that Hamilton’s penalty, ten seconds, would not be increased. Since then the focus has returned to the track and the racing itself. ZiggoSport spoke to the main players, including Hamilton, prior to the weekend. The Brit indeed says to have spoken with the Dutchman, without really going into the content of the conversation. “It was a respectful conversation. The goal was to check that he was ok and emphasize that we all know that the drivers never deliberately harm each other.” The current number two in the standings also had another goal with the conversation. “I wanted to confirm the mutual respect. I think we continue to race each other hard, but fair.” Yesterday, both men drove together again on track for the first time since the incident. Qualifying will follow today, followed by the race on Sunday. Verstappen will then want to take sporting revenge and Hamilton will try to catch up further.

Formula 1’s 2021 title battle was already proving to be intense, but the fallout in the wake of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen’s British Grand Prix collision has given it an extra edge. Thursday media days are typically routine and sometimes uneventful affairs by F1’s standards. However, that was not the case on the eve of the Hungarian Grand Prix as everyone waited to find out how the dust had settled (if at all) following that controversial Copse clash. It marked the first time that Verstappen had spoken publicly since his 51G smash, while Hamilton would also get a chance to respond to Red Bull and Verstappen’s claims. Minutes after F1’s leading protagonists had wrapped up their press conference duties, the duo’s respective team colleagues were attending a gathering with the stewards. This was a consequence of Red Bull requesting a right to review the 10-second time penalty given to Hamilton for being “predominantly” at fault for the coming together that eliminated Verstappen from the race on the spot and left the Dutchman requiring a trip to hospital for precautionary checks. Red Bull firmly believed that Hamilton’s punishment was too lenient because he was still able to recover to win the race, while it was left facing a £1.3m repair bill and a significant points loss. As such, the team pushed the FIA to re-examine the crash in what appeared to be a bold and, as it turned out, unsuccessful attempt to retrospectively get the seven-time world champion’s penalty increased. It ultimately came as little surprise when Red Bull’s petition was rejected due to a lack of “new, significant and relevant” evidence. The outcome means Hamilton’s win definitively stands, leaving him just eight points behind Verstappen heading into the weekend. While the verdict had been considered a foregone conclusion by many in the paddock, elements of information that emerged from the hearing created unexpected intrigue and left some unanswered questions. Along with a series of slides of GPS data and a comparison of Hamilton’s overtake on Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Red Bull included a “re-enactment” of Hamilton’s first-lap line driven by its reserve driver Alex Albon in what was the most bizarre element of the ‘new evidence’ it presented. Red Bull got Albon to re-create Hamilton’s line into Copse during a private testing day at Silverstone on 22 July, four days after the British GP. This followed a two-day Pirelli tyre test and came just a day before Albon contested the Lausitzring DTM round. Because Red Bull used a 2019-spec RB15, the test was unrestricted, meaning it did not have to adhere to the 100km limit permitted for filming days, which are used purely for marketing or promotional purposes. As per article 10.2 of F1’s sporting regulations, teams carrying out testing of “previous cars” should provide at least 72 hours notice “where possible” before it is due to commence, as well as details surrounding the nature and purpose of the test. It is not clear whether Red Bull already had this outing lined up, or whether the test was specifically used with the sole intention of re-enacting Hamilton’s entry to Copse in a bid to gain evidence it felt was compelling enough to validate its petition. Either way, it underlined the lengths Red Bull was willing to go to in its attempt to revisit Hamilton’s British GP penalty. In the end, the information presented was dismissed for being created rather than “discovered” and the stewards ruled there were “clearly” no grounds for the incident being re-examined. Red Bull’s submission also consisted of a letter – seen by Mercedes representatives Ron Meadows, Andrew Shovlin, and James Vowles – that was referenced as containing “certain allegations” which the stewards noted “with some concern”. The stewards concluded these “may or may not have been relevant to the stewards if the petition for review had been granted” and confirmed they had been addressed directly, adding they will make “no comments on those allegations”. Mercedes declined to reveal the nature of the allegations when reached for comment. For the time being at least, the exact contents of Red Bull’s letter are set to remain private, prompting further mystery around the case. In a strongly-worded statement condemning Red Bull’s conduct in its relentless and scathing public criticism of Hamilton in the days following the crash, Mercedes “welcomed” the stewards’ decision. “In addition to bringing this incident to a close we hope that this decision will mark the end of a concerted attempt by the senior management of Red Bull Racing to tarnish the good name and sporting integrity of Lewis Hamilton, including in the documents for their unsuccessful right of review,” it read. “We now look forward to going racing this weekend and to continuing our hard-fought competition for the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.

Formula 1 championship leader Max Verstappen laid down the early benchmark by topping the timesheets in opening practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix, while Yuki Tsunoda caused a red flag. Two weeks on from his dramatic, race-ending collision with title rival Lewis Hamilton at the British GP, the Red Bull driver set the pace in first practice on the soft tyres, lapping the Hungaroring in 1m17.555s. Verstappen’s time put him just 0.061s clear of Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas at the end of FP1, while Hamilton was third, 0.167s adrift of his main championship rival who holds an eight point advantage heading into the last race before F1’s summer break. The 60-minute practice session was interrupted when AlphaTauri rookie Tsunoda lost control of his car and spun rearwards into the barriers at Turn 4, causing a brief suspension. Carlos Sainz was half a second down on Verstappen’s benchmark as he finished fourth-fastest for Ferrari, ahead of AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly. A day after celebrating his 40th birthday, two-time world champion Fernando Alonso took sixth for Alpine, having outpaced the second Ferrari of Charles Leclerc by just 0.006s. Sergio Perez was nearly a full second slower than his Red Bull teammate in eighth, while Lando Norris and Lance Stroll completed the rest of the top-10 for McLaren and Aston Martin respectively. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon missed out on a spot in the top 10 by just 0.010s as Tsunoda’s session-ending crash left him 12th in the FP1 order. Further down the timesheets, Robert Kubica finished 18th in his third FP1 outing of the season for Alfa Romeo. The Pole, who deputised for Kimi Raikkonen on Friday morning, ended up faster than Nikita Mazepin’s Haas and Antonio Giovinazzi in the other Alfa Romeo. 2021 F1 HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX – FREE PRACTICE RESULTS (1) POS DRIVER NAT. TEAM TIME 1 Max Verstappen NED Red Bull Racing 1m17.555s 2 Valtteri Bottas FIN Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team 1m17.616s 3 Lewis Hamilton GBR Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team 1m17.722s 4 Carlos Sainz ESP Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow 1m18.115s 5 Pierre Gasly FRA Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda 1m18.181s 6 Fernando Alonso CHI Alpine F1 Team 1m18.385s 7 Charles Leclerc MON Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow 1m18.391s 8 Sergio Perez MEX Red Bull Racing 1m18.466s 9 Lando Norris GBR McLaren F1 Team 1m18.649s 10 Lance Stroll CAN Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team 1m18.755s 11 Esteban Ocon FRA Alpine F1 Team 1m18.765s 12 Yuki Tsunoda JPN Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda 1m18.770s 13 Sebastian Vettel GER Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team 1m18.989s 14 Daniel Ricciardo AUS McLaren F1 Team 1m19.265s 15 George Russell ISR Williams Racing 1m19.724s 16 Nicholas Latifi CAN Williams Racing 1m19.824s 17 Mick Schumacher GER Uralkali Haas F1 Team 1m20.383s 18 Robert Kubica POL Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen 1m20.639s 19 Nikita Mazepin RUS Uralkali Haas F1 Team 1m20.992s 20 Antonio Giovinazzi GBR Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen 1m21.889s

Pierre Gasly says he is expecting to receive an update on his Formula 1 future from Red Bull “at some point in the summer break”. Gasly has turned in a series of impressive displays this season for AlphaTauri and is likely to stay put at the Faenza outfit for at least another year alongside rookie teammate Yuki Tsunoda. Red Bull already has Max Verstappen signed up to a long-term deal and is expected to offer Sergio Perez an extension to his initial one-year contract after the Mexican’s strong performances across the opening 10 days. Asked for an update about his future ahead of this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix, Gasly replied: “I think it’s pretty clear on my end, it’s in Red Bull’s hands. “Max is signed for next year in the top team, Sergio I think has a one-year contract, so we’ll see what happens there and then what we do going forward together. “I’m obviously contracted with them for some more time and I’m pretty confident we should get some answers at some point in the summer break, or after the summer break.” The 25-year-old Frenchman, who claimed a podium finish in Baku, indicated that he would like to return to Red Bull but revealed that the Milton Keynes squad is keen to retain a ‘team leader’ figure in AlphaTauri for next year. “They want a leader in AlphaTauri to really push the team forward and bring this team up,” Gasly explained. “I think there is a great working relationship and a real will to push AlphaTauri forward. “As a driver, you always want to be in the best car and fighting for the best positions and that’s what we are discussing. Ultimately, on my side, I’m only focusing on performing weekend after weekend and race after race and show my potential. “It’s in their hands whether they want me to step up, or whether they want to stick with the pair that they are having. It depends on how Sergio is performing and how they are planning the future for AlphaTauri. “We are discussing a lot of things and I think generally it’s really positive. It’s always better when there’s communication and when things are going well, but at the moment there is no more answer than that. “But I expect some more news over the next few weeks.”